


R76 Vent Drabble

by Edge_Daddy



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Anxiety, Comfort No Hurt, M/M, Mental Health Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-05
Updated: 2018-12-05
Packaged: 2019-09-12 02:14:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16864297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Edge_Daddy/pseuds/Edge_Daddy
Summary: Gabriel has a bad day.Sensory Overload based on today's RL experience for me.





	R76 Vent Drabble

**Author's Note:**

> Had a shitty day, experienced sensory overload and ten hours later I'm still jittery. So, I decided to write some vent fic about that experience starring one of my OTPs.

Today had started off… not so good. Sure, Gabriel had got himself some mostly decent sleep but something was just off about today. Off in the sense that every little thing seemed to irritate him. The sound of the coffee machine whirring, the sound of the bacon crackling as it cooked in the pan, the sound of traffic outside. Every damn thing. Sure, everyone had their off days. Those days where you were a bear with two or more heads for no discernible reason; but this wasn’t anything like one of those days. He just couldn’t put his finger on what the cause was.

The apartment was too quiet, Gabe never liked the quiet. It drove him mad, gave his restless mind too many places to wander to. Too many bad places where it shouldn’t wander. While his breakfast cooked, he went to take care of that, turning on some music on the stereo to get rid of that silence. Morning TV shows were terrible and he had a feeling their voices would irritate him. Yet music was the one thing that never hit that spot in his mind. It kept him focused a little more, helped his mood most of the time. Gave his mind something to pay attention to, rather than running wild with his imagination. 

Jack was already gone for the morning, he started early today and so he’d be home somewhere after lunch. Depending how busy the cafe was. Gabriel was eternally grateful that he was his own boss, which meant today, the business he ran from home was closed. There was no way he’d be able to work like this. Hell, he hadn’t even finished breakfast and he felt like he needed to go back to bed. Maybe some food and a nice, black coffee would cure what ailed him. He buttered the toast and loaded it up, slapping the fried eggs atop the fair serve of bacon and sat down to eat. 

Even the crunch of the toast was annoying, normally it was a satisfying thing. Crunchy foods were a good thing. Today? Today he frowned as the knife crunched through the toast, but he wouldn’t waste it, so he forced it down and didn’t enjoy it as much as normal. Maybe he was just overtired and needed a nap, some extra sleep or something. He downed his coffee and set the dishes in the dishwasher before going over and turning on the computer, maybe he’d just check his emails and just goof off a little, give the caffeine some time to kick in. It had to help, right?

He never got any less tired, nothing really held his interest. No games he tried, nothing. Nothing that usually entertained him. Even watching short videos weren’t as interesting, but they held his attention a little more. A couple of hours had passed, a few hours until Jack was due home. His tension levels were raising with his tiredness and apparent boredom. 

That’s when it started.

Sounds from outside got his attention, loud. Machinery, more than one different kind and both of them together spiked the lingering tension into something akin to anxiety. It set his teeth on edge. It was so loud. Drowning out the video he was trying to watch and all he wanted to do was go into hiding. Stopping the video, he did just that and quickly retreated into the bedroom, phone in hand. Closing the door behind him he buried himself in the bed, burrowing under the blankets, shoving his head under his pillow with a set jaw and grit teeth. Everything and nothing was suddenly beyond overwhelming and he pressed his hands against his face, tears spilling from his eyes and a choked whimper forcing it’s way out of his clenched throat.

His hand moved to his mouth, trying to stop himself but unable to. This was new, the sounds of the machinery through the closed door still made him twitch and he yanked the covers over his head, his breath huffing harshly. Gabriel wasn’t even comfortable in his bed, not completely. Tears rolled down his face when he couldn’t hold them in anymore, his arms clutching Jack’s pillow close to himself tightly as he willed himself to calm down. He finally moved his head to lay on top of his pillow and he reached out for his phone, fumbling to get some music playing, surprised as how much time had passed. He noticed, as the sound filled the air, that the machinery had stopped, but he was still twitchy and he allowed himself to focus on that rather than anything else.

Finally, his tears slowed and finally stopped. Even if that tension was still bubbling under the surface and now he was tired. More tired than before. He should probably get up soon, make some lunch, but here was safe. His hand rubbed at the other, pressing at the knuckles that felt like something was off with them, a strange pressure that he couldn’t ignore. His scalp felt twitchy and irritated, a hand pushed through his hair with a trembling hand to try and stop that sensation. It did nothing. Just like the rubbing at his hands. Nothing was soothing any of this, all it was doing was keeping him worked up. So for now, he’d stay here, ride it out and try to let it pass.

No matter how long he closed his eyes, he just couldn’t sleep. He rested, sure, but bouts of sadness hit him again out of nowhere and tears dampened his pillow once again. This was getting ridiculous, which just made him more tense. The bedroom door opened and he almost startled, he hadn’t even heard anything outside of the bedroom and his head peeked over the pillow, meeting Jack’s curious gaze. The blond’s brow furrowed in confusion at the sight of his husband in bed, at 1pm.

“Gabe, are you okay?” He asked softly, slipping into the room, closing the door and moving to kneel on the Latino’s side of the bed. “Have you been crying? What’s wrong?”

“Wish I knew.” He whispered, distressed, the pressure in his joints again making him rub his knuckles again. “I can’t stop.”

“Hey, hey, shhh. It’s okay.” Jack watched his hands rubbing at each other. “You want some company?” He knew how Gabriel got sometimes, he’d learned to not take things personal if the man didn’t want to be touched unless it was on his terms or when he wanted to be alone. 

If he was honest, he wasn’t sure. His head was so thrown out of whack right now. “Maybe.”

That was enough of a yes for Jack and he stood up, toeing off his boots, going around to the other side of the bed and shuffling under the covers. He pressed up against Gabe’s side, head on the edge of the pillow, one hand settling over his restless ones, stroking the skin gently. He could feel how tense his love was and even with Jack’s hand on his, Gabe still worried at his knuckles. Jack nuzzled in against his neck, making gentle hushing sounds, not needing to say anything. He wasn’t being told to go for now, or even to stop touching him, so he’d settle with spooning him and peppering his neck with gentle kisses.

They stayed like that, silent and snuggled for another half an hour before Gabe’s movements slowed and stopped. His breathing calmed down and evened out as he fell asleep, probably not for more than an hour or so, but Jack was glad he was finally relaxed enough to get some rest after… whatever it was that had happened. He’d stay here with him until he woke up, he wouldn’t leave him to wake up alone, not after coming home to this.


End file.
